The thing about Greece

We asked one our volunteers to tell us a little about their experience so far.

Check out the new blog to learn a little bit more about the current situation in Greece and about how some people are contributing in a positive way.

The thing about Greece – 5 Hellenic Hallmarks

I have officially been in Greece one month and I am loving it. At the risk of sounding like every travel blog ever: there is so much to take in! My senses are overwhelmed and yet, it is only the beginning. So to help you get a sense of what it’s like to live in Athens here are my top five peculiar particulars from my volunteer voyage.
1 They don’t flush the loo roll!
Here in Athens the toilet paper goes in a bin beside the toilet, not down the pan. Ew, gross or what! I hate changing that bin bag…

2 Cats, Cats and More Cats!
There are multitudes of cats and they have no fear of humans because EVERYONE FEEDS THEM! You go out at about 5pm and everyone and their granny is leaving food out for those feral felines. They are even brazen enough to beg at the table while you tuck in at your local tavern.

3 Nobody pays for public transport.
This isn’t even a joke. Nobody pays. Like ever. They are trying to bring in an electronic swipe card (like the leapcard) but the barriers are not in use yet. People don’t pay on principle. We shall see how this one unfolds…

4 Light a candle for your lungs.
First of all, people smoke indoors. Yes, they are part of the EU; yes, they have a total ban on smoking in enclosed public spaces and no, nobody gives a damn about it. Second, the sheer number of vehicles on the road and the constant traffic would give anyone the black lung. Lump that in with lots of cats, pigeons and people and you have pulmonary perdition.

5 Tagging is rife.
Every possible empty space is filled with graffiti: some good, some bad and some plain racist. It’s as if people will forget their own names if they don’t plaster it all over every building, and it’s not just in the ‘bad’ parts of town. In the middle of it all though you can find some hidden gems like this anti-racism artwork:

And yet after all this wonderful weirdness my wanderlust is still not abated… #RatherBeCamping #Scoutlife #Rover #Time2bewelcome #ScoutingIreland

If you enjoyed this post, tune in next month when I meet up with some Greek explorer scouts for some awesome awareness and adventure!

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